31 Years Later
You’re right. I wrote about this album before. Here. One of those truly lamentable CD era casualties. 1994 was probably that one year when absolutely nothing was getting a vinyl release. Looking back from 2025 that really looks absurd. The CD has receded into insignificance, old CDs worth next to nothing, and vinyl is selling as if the 90s had never happened.
Great. Really. Even in spite of all the questionable side effects. Even the lamest 80s and 90s Album gets a re-release. As if hordes of fans had been impatiently waiting for that “Footloose” Soundtrack to be available on vinyl again, even on 180g. Or those anniversary issues, hey look, fans, our debut was released five years ago, here’s the screaming pink vinyl anniversary deluxe re-release for forty bucks. And tons of albums being thrown on the market in endless versions, different colors of vinyl, with XL, Deluxe, Super Deluxe and Monster Mega Effing Deluxe.
So, you get all of this, and even re-releases of ABBA albums that you can get for a buck and a half at any second hand vinyl shop – but you don’t get “One Step Ahead Of The Spider”? Okay, yes, regarding fame and all that, MC 900 is not necessarily in the same league as our friends from Sweden, but still… This guy is still so famous that even decades later his fans are mourning his departure from the music business and would probably trade their grandmothers in for a vinyl version of this album.
At some point, I seriously looked into the cost of having the album cut just for myself. Painfully expensive of course, so I never did it. But it was close. Same goes for Black Gold 360’s “LM6iX“. I will have this on vinyl one day, one way or another.
At least, I don’t have to worry about “One Step Ahead Of The Spider” anymore. Thanks to the dedicated folks of DFW Legacy Series we now have a truly excellent vinyl release. It took a lot of patience as fans outside of the US had to wait for the second round, and it had a hefty price tag on the shipping, coming in all the way from Dallas, but a) I just had to get it, and b) the price was absolutely fair.
Especially when you look at the package itself. This is more than just a re-release. Not only does it include all tracks of the original album, they even included the magnificent “Regression Session” on it, which was published as a B-side or “If I Only Had A Brain”. I could have done without it, I own that 12″, but it just totally belongs on this album. And if you listen to the vinyl release in its entirety, the addition of “Regression Session” emphasizes Mark Griffin’s unique storytelling talent, pushing the selections that are slightly too much mid-90s and haven’t aged as well a little more to the side.
Another plus: it sounds marvelous. Great pressing, superior quality, excellent job. The double album comes in flashy purple and blue “galaxy” colors, carefully placed in a high-quality gatefold, including an insert with all the great stories told on this rare gem of an album.
Among all the 8000 plus vinyl on my shelves, this is definitely my most cherished re-release.
Release for review:
MC 900 FT JESUS – ONE STEP AHEAD OF THE SPIDER – NTX RECORDS – DFWLS-034